The Jefferson County Board of Education’s new members took their seats Nov. 21 and wasted little time in making their voices heard.

Ken Witt, one of three new board members elected in a conservative landslide Nov. 5, was chosen as board president minutes after he was sworn in before a standing-room-only crowd.

Julie Williams and John Newkirk, the other new members, were also elected to leadership positions, as first vice president and secretary, respectively, the new majority sweeping the top spots on the five-member board.

The three ran as a slate of conservative candidates in the Nov. 5 election, their campaigns pushing for more school choice and opposing Amendment 66, the statewide ballot measure asking for a $950 million tax increase.

Addressing the audience Thursday, Witt offered up some “rumor control” and said while he wants to work toward a pay-for-performance model of teacher compensation, he has no intention of “being Douglas County.”

“We want to be the best Jeffco we can be, not Douglas or Denver County models, but developing great Jeffco models,” Witt said.

Witt also said the new board intends to work cooperatively with the district’s employee associations and that he would like to see both a one-time bonus for employees and lower fees for families.

A nationwide search will be conducted to replace Superintendent Cindy Stevenson, who announced her retirement in the days following the election, he said.

“I have every intention of raising salaries and being the go-to district because of work conditions and salaries,” Witt said.

Newkirk and Williams echoed Witt’s sentiments, emphasizing lower fees for families, more resources and flexibility for teachers and more choices for students.

“I want to be sure we’re paying our best teachers very well so that we can retain them,” Newkirk said. “I want to be sure we’re paying new Jeffco teachers very well so we can attract the best and the brightest.”

Said Williams, to the community: “I want to make sure that your voices are heard, valued and respected. You spoke in this past election, and I thank you. We need to rapidly improve the engagement of our community.”

One change the board has already made is to the timing of meetings.

The next regular school board meeting will begin at 6:30 p.m. Dec. 12 — 30 minutes later than normal to accommodate board and community members.

The location will be the auditorium at Lakewood High School, 9700 W. Eighth Ave., not the board chambers in the district administration building in Golden.

Witt said he hopes to move the meetings throughout the community to make it easier for people to participate.

During Thursday’s meeting, the board sat at a long folding table on the floor below the traditional raised dais in the board chambers — which district officials said came at the request of the new members.

More than 40 people spoke during a public comment session after the swearing-in ceremony.

Each speaker received only one minute to address the board, the mix of parents and teachers both concerned and excited about the change in leadership.

A number of teachers, including a large contingent from Lakewood High School, invited the new board into their classrooms to see firsthand what kind of work is being done in the district.

Other speakers urged cooperation and said what’s best for kids, not politics, should be front and center.

Supporters said they were looking forward to expanded educational choices, as well as tighter oversight of taxpayer dollars.

Florida’s state social services agency investigated Nikolas Cruz’s home life more than a year before police say he killed 17 people at his former high school, closing the inquiry after determining that his “final level of risk is low,” despite learning that the teenager had behavioral struggles and was planning to buy a gun, according to an investigative report.